September Newsletter Highlights: City of Tacoma Grants AIDNW $20,000 for Phone Funds
Notes from the Chair
On September 9th, Tacoma City Council awarded AIDNW $20,000 in contingency funds to reimburse phone fund expenses – twice the amount they awarded to us last year!
I am so grateful for the support of City Council and specifically Councilmember Olgy Diaz, who sponsored the resolution and spearheaded the effort, as well as co-sponsors Kristina Walker, Joe Bushnell, and Sandesh Sadalge. I’m encouraged that there is increasing awareness of the plight faced by those detained at the NWIPC, especially in the context of the federal government’s recent actions across the US. I’m also hopeful for continued dialogue with City Council: our position at the doorstep of the NWIPC gives us a unique perspective, opportunity, and —candidly — an obligation, to share and inform.
As you know, every dollar helps provide vital services, support, and one staff member to manage it all. Our Summer Campaign ends September 21st, and we have not yet reached our $15,000 goal. If you have it within your heart or means to support, please donate today! Please also consider setting up a monthly contribution which helps offset our regular monthly expenses. I am always amazed at the generosity of our donors: thank you for helping us continue our mission!
In service, – Ben Jones, AIDNW Board Chair
Summer Fundraising Campaign Event
On August 23rd, AIDNW launched our Summer Campaign at Melanie’s Park on the Foss waterway. Volunteers, community members, donors, and board members attended and shared stories, making the organization even stronger with its newfound connections.
Pilgrimage of Hope
The Archdiocese of Seattle and St. Leo’s in Tacoma are sponsoring a Pilgrimage of Hope on Saturday, October 4th at 9:30 am from St. Leo’s, 710 S 13th St, Tacoma, WA 98405, to the detention center. The event is meant to express hope and compassion for detainees and all immigrants, and “all people of goodwill and any faith tradition” are invited to join. The AIDNW Welcome Center will be open to visitors. For more information see: https://
A Thank you to Mountain View Lutheran Church in Edgewood for holding a pancake breakfast to benefit AIDNW!
August Volunteer Reports from the Welcome Center, Visitation & Host Home Programs
| From the Host Home Program:
Juan stayed two nights in our home after being released. He and his son, both from Houston, were legally working for an American oil company in Montana, and were rounded up by ICE agents. Two miserable months in detention followed. We shared meals and conversations using Google Translate as he waited for his son to be released. He was a very kind, appreciative and friendly man. He told stories of his family and younger son who was waiting for him to come home, and their life in Houston. He shared why he was seeking asylum and that it would not be safe for him and and family to return to his country of origin. Fortunately, his boss was very supportive and paid the bond, the plane tickets and for an attorney. I recently received texts and a picture from him, smiling and holding a thumbs up. He and his son are back doing back-breaking work on the oil fields in Montana. They have their papers and work permits on them to show ICE agents if they are approached again. From the Visitation Program: Abe, one of the men I visit, has been in detention for 2 years without due process. He had a construction business in California, paid taxes for the past 15 years, and was sought after by loyal clients due to his good work. We talk about how little in his situation he can control and how to manage his feelings of depression and powerlessness. He told me that lately lunch hasn’t been served until 6:00 or 6:30 pm and dinner between 11:30 pm and 2:00 am. They are deprived of healthy sleep and nutrition. He tries every day to be patient and not give up. He spends his days reading, playing games, researching in the law library, helping others with their legal paperwork, and offering support to the others in his pod. He is trying to make a difficult decision about whether to self-deport, which carries the risk of being sent to a country other than his own. Stories are coming from detainees that those being deported are sometimes being told to choose between South Sudan, Libya and El Salvador, instead of their country of origin. Abe just wants to be with his daughter, mother and family. He wants his freedom back. From the Welcome Center: Our first and only guest was transferred from Colorado with another 20 men, all in handcuffs, on an airplane with no food and low on water. He was happy to be out, but the smile turned into tears as he shared and remembered the other men. *
Our guest called his wife, and she was overjoyed to know that he was released and was ready to catch a flight to meet him in Washington, rent a car, and drive to Denver. She was even happier to learn that he could fly instead. We secured a flight for him to Denver late in the evening. I drove our guest to the airport, walked with him through security, * Father and son were both VERY thankful to be experiencing their first day of “freedom” in the United States after approximately 13 months in detention (California, Nevada, Washington). It was a privilege to be a small part of their day. * A gentleman from Colombia whose family drove up from Vancouver to get him had been in detention for 2 months. He’d gone to his first immigration hearing in Portland and left with his lawyer only to be followed for about 8 blocks and then picked up by ICE agents (the lawyer was present). The agents told the lawyer that he’d be held in the Portland facility so she would be able to visit regularly, but he was on a transport bus bound for the Northwest Center that same day. * There were many family and friends awaiting releases today. It was a jovial mood, and we interacted with all the people congregated by the release gate. The first release was a young woman from Kent, WA. Her family embraced her and quickly left for home. The next release was a young man of Mexican descent from Houston, TX. Livia had spoken earlier at length to his wife who was enroute to SEATAC because she was under the impression that her husband wouldn’t be able to fly home with his ICE ID. The plan was for them to drive home to Houston. Her flight was arriving at 9 pm this evening and Joe took him to the Enterprise rental car at SEATAC to wait for her. He has an adorable little 14 month old boy and because of his stay in detention he missed his 1st birthday. We talked about his fear that his child would not recognize him and how it has affected him. * The first person released was a man, originally from Mexico, who had been detained and released from NWDC a few years ago. He even showed me the original blue card that he had back then, and the new blue card that he got today. Around 4 pm, a man from Venezuela was released. He knew the Mexican man as they were in the same pod. Prior to being detained, he had already had his asylum approved, a work permit and a driver’s license. His wife has a job, too. He just happened to be at the wrong place at the wrong time being near someone who got picked up and eventually deported. The last man, originally from Kenya, was not released until around 6:30 pm. I was in communication with the ICE officer every hour via text. The man has a family nearby, so Terry went ahead to the airport with the Venezuelan, and we only had to wait for about 15-30 minutes for the last man to be picked up. We closed up and left around 7:15 pm. * It was a good day at the Welcome Center with two releases. The first was a woman from Ghana who has lived in the US for ten years, has two children, and lives in Spokane. She has had a deportation case ongoing for the last several years and has paid several thousand dollars to attorneys who have taken her money. Her current attorney is expensive, but got her out on a bond today. She has been in detention for 3 months. The second was a minister originally from Mexico who has been in the US for 10 years. He had been monitored for a time in 2017. He was summoned by ICE in March and sent here. Apparently he was released because of his good record and has a path to citizenship. He has two young children…[and] just got remarried…3 days before being detained. A friend came and picked him up for the trip back to eatern Washington. * Two lawyers then stopped by to inform us that their client was in the process of being booked out. He came out about an hour later, and a family member paid for a plane ticket. I printed the ticket while he repacked his belongings into duffle bags, and Marsha and I left with him for the airport at 6:30ish. Traffic was surprisingly light, and we got his bags checked and took him through security unusually quickly as well. He is looking forward to reuniting with his mother, 2 children, 4 dogs, and 4 cats. |
